FFXIV: Honored Legacy
by Retribrutus
Summary: It's been five years since the calamity had scarred Eorzea, and with dreaded machinations of the Garlemald Empire closing in along with infernal primals ruining the land, all seems lost. The hour to strike back is now at hand! Follow the misadventures of a man scouring the realm finding his own purpose in life as he grows to one day become the hero that Eorzea desperately needs.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 (?)**

* * *

This feeling it was so vague yet so familiar. It was like he was floating in a sea, but its soothing warmth encompassed his whole being from the tips of his toes to the fringes of his hair's red bangs. He felt at home as waded through the ethereal void around him, though it was a mystery as to where he was, he still felt as if he was at home. At Peace.

"Hear…"

Roused from his listless drifting, the young man slowly began his descent. Where to even descend to in this vast place was beyond him, yet once again it all felt so familiar to him. Much to his surprise, he found his feet soon touching what amounted to the ground.

"Hear…Feel…" And that voice, it kept ringing through his head, or was it the world that he was in. Everything just didn't make sense to him but somehow it did. Before he could gather his bearings, a bright ball light flickers its way from above to float in front of him. Such a sight would naturally warrant him to take caution, yet, he still felt compelled to walk to it.

"Hear…Feel…Think…" Suddenly, the urge died at the same time he sensed a looming threat appear from the ball of light which twisted itself to form a spiraling portal of darkness, the entrance was pitch black and what emerged from it was but a clawed hand which was followed by an unsettling man, thing, or creature that wore archaic black robes and a horrifying mask that hid half of his face.

"…!" The young man was quick to reach for his blade but was shocked to find his belt empty with nothing to protect himself with in the face of the unknown enemy. But then rang that voice in his head once more "Hear…Feel…Think…" and he was once again calm. His posture lax as he remained in his crouched stance with less tense shoulders.

Looking directly at the enemy, he still kept his hand to his side. The threat still loomed in front of his eyes, but his wits were still about him to lose any semblance of control. Even the sight of another ball of light floating towards him didn't make him flinch, as he soon became engulfed by it's radiance to soon realize that his sense of apparel had changed.

The strawed hat that sat on his head was but a minor inconvenience to him. All the lied ahead was his enemy, though he felt no weight to it, a blade was now finally in his hands. It wasn't either of his known ones, but it was still a weapon that he could use nonetheless. As soon his hand tightened against the curved blade's hilt, a blistering wave of light flowed out of him.

In response, the black robed entity released an otherworldly hiss as a powerful surge of malicious dark energy engulfed it.

Just one stroke would finish it, thought the young man as his stance grew less loose. He could end things with one strike just before the damned thing could even take one step. The two warring enemies stood still as their respective energies grew until they reached their peak.

Lunging forward, the black robed entity rabidly shot its arm to release a massive wave of darkness just about at the exact moment, the young man's blade of light instantaneously slid out of its sheath. The force of impact soon rang through the void leaving the young man with no clear distinction as to who dealt the first blow. As everything after that soon faded to white.

Though he may have not glimpsed much from that educating experience, he was still able to ingrain one last image into his head.

That of the malignant creature's true face.

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**Hello, everyone! Yes, I'm doing a FFXIV fic because I believe its strangely one of the stories that are lacking any fanfics, so I decided to throw my own take on the story. Here's a warning, I won't be using the story's expressive use of language and prose, I'll try, but don't expect too much from me. I'll try to keep what makes the game loveable for the story, but there will be elements reworked to make it digestible and easy to understand.**

**Welp, I hope you guys enjoy Honored Legacy, and don't worry, I'm still working on the next chapter of DxD. I'm back in school and am currently looking for an On-campus job, so wish me luck.**

**I'm Out so Peace Out and have a lovely day!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

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The stirring of the carriage's bumpy traversal through the dirt trails of the lush green forests of the Black Shroud was enough to rouse the young man from his slumber albeit while still half-asleep.

"Oi!" Added along with the extra yelling coming from his extra passenger was enough to jolt back to reality. He had nearly knocked over his two curved blades that now rest on his shoulder with both of their dragon themed hilts leaning on the seats edge. Shaking his lowered head, the first thing that the young man could see were his brown boots, black pants and his resting arms laid out on his lap outfitted with belted black leather gloves.

Drowsily looking up, he looks to find two young Elezen kids. He quickly rubbed his eyes to make sure that they weren't playing tricks with him. But after a getting a good look at them, he was able to confirm that they were twins.

At first, he couldn't quite make any distinctions of their gender due to their strikingly similar disposition, honestly, the only way to tell them apart was by either solely concentrating on their facial differences and the blue and red ribbons that neatly kept their snow-white hair in braided pony tails. So, a brother and sister then, thought the young man. He did remember them being one of the passengers that joined in on their ride to Gridania after he and his companion had left Thanalan.

Worrying that he was staring too much, he quickly averted his attention to the man that had woken him up on the opposite side of the cart. He looked a bit grizzled but guessing from the wares that he carried with him in the back, he expected as much from a merchant.

"Y'all right, lad?" The tanned man worriedly asked, "Had a bad dream, did you? You were muttering something strange while sweating buckets."

"…Y-Yeah, I did, didn't I? Sorry about that." The young man scratched at his red banged black hair. Looked like that dream had that much of an impact on him than he would have figured. What was all that strange nonsense about and that creature…it wasn't any monster or person that he had faced before.

"No need, you must be experiencing the aether sickness. Aye, ever since the calamity began more of these aether shifts have caused a few illnesses, but nothing too severe as of late." The merchant reassuringly smiled at him, "You'll soon get used to it, lad." Grabbing an open bottle of rum nearby, he held it out to the young man.

Not in the mood, the young man politely declined the offer, and with a shrug the merchant began to indulge himself with a few savory swigs of the concoction. The air of the forest was just what you would expect, humid. He could already feel some sweat dripping off his brow, yet the shade from the cart's roof made it possible to defend the passengers from the sun's harsh rays from beating down on them.

Not that it mattered coming from him considering he's more acquainted with the desert sun back in Thanalan. The rays here probably wouldn't warm up his dark skin like it would back in Thanalan, but the Black Shroud's humidity could very well give it a run for its money. Makes him glad that he had the money to get just enough material to craft a light enough chain shirt armor to use beneath his black button up shirt that he kept with its sleeves rolled up.

Speaking of money, well, it wouldn't be nice to think of him as a link to the term, but Momozigo was always there to keep his affairs with Gil management in check above all of the other things that he does for him. Looking back, he sees his blond Lalafell buddy resting on the empty cart seat.

The young man didn't mind sitting on the floor and wouldn't want to fault his friend for hogging the seat, their trip was long and after all of their preparations it was only natural that he would get this sleepy.

In fact, he was starting to get a little sleepy himself-.

*Tooooooooooot~!*

"Rhalgar give me strength…" The young man breathed exhaustedly as he looked around and spotted a cut-ahem, peculiar sight. A flying bat creature with a huge ball on its head blowing a horn. That's right, he was not making this up, a flying bat creature blowing a horn. How sick was he?

"Oh, why hello there, kupo." Hngh, even its voice was cute.

"H-Hi?" The young man received a questioning glance from the merchant but waved it off to continue talking with the cute creature in front of him.

"Aha, you can see and hear us, can't you!?" the flying creature giggled.

"The seeing part is absolutely debatable, but I can certainly hear you," The young man motioned to the creature's horn much to their embarrassment as they were quick to stow it away. Curious, the young man asked, "So what are you?" But before he could get his question answered, the creature quickly went for the merchant's bottle of rum and took a quick swig.

"Blech, this tastes awful…" Without a second thought, it casted it out of the cart much to the young man's surprise as he looked to the merchant for a response.

"Is something the matter, lad?" Nothing? But didn't he see the bottle just get tossed out?

"Oh, that's right. Normal folk can't normally see or hear us, so it makes you really special!" The creature danced about around the cart.

"Really, that's nice…thanks…" The young man smiled, it was a good start to his day after that weird dream. Hm, looking up, he noticed the blue ribboned Elezen boy give the creature a quick glance. Could he see it, too?

"Apologies, I forgot to introduce myself, I am a Moogle, and my kind live here in these woods." The Moogle bowed, "The reason I came to see you was if you saw any weird occurrences on you're way here. The woods been restless as of late, and we really want to help set things right, kupo."

"Sorry, I've been a bit tired so I pretty much slept the whole ride here." Noticing the merchant giving him another strange look, the young man frowned and waved it off. Boy, he must have really looked like a nut job talking to thin air to him.

"I see, that makes sense. Your trip must have been arduous. Well there's nothing to it then. We'll just keep looking, and enjoy you're stay in the woods. Also, give my apologies to your friend as well, I may have gotten bored trying to get your attention while sleeping." The Moogle waved as he flew off to join a group of flying moogles near the surprisingly tall tree tops.

What a cute bunch they are, the young man thought.

"By the twelve…?" The merchant jumped in his seat once he noticed the disappearance of his rum and quickly turned to the young man with a wide eyed look on his face, "You wouldn't have happen to see where it had…"

Looking up to the air, the young man gave the man a cheeky smile and shrugged his shoulders. His lips were sealed.

"Bah, if I can't spend my remaining time drinking, then I suppose talking will just have to do." The merchant sighed wistfully, "Besides, I believe that you'll care for a bit of conversation than them young'uns there."

"Okay, so what do you want to talk about?" The young man asked.

"How about we introduce ourselves, Bremondt's the name, an' peddlin's me trade." The merchant jabbed his thumb to his chest and grinned.

"Well, my name is Michael Stormkrieg, a pleasure, Bremondt." The young man respectfully bowed his head.

"Michael Stormkrieg, eh? A rather interesting name, and a familiar one at that too." The kind merchant rubbed his chin in thought while Michael remained as indifferent to the idea of being recognized. It made no difference, he was still meeting someone new. Taking a closer look at him, Bremondt whistled, and said, "That aside, judging from you're worn clothes and weird weaponry, you must be an adventure, am I warm?"

Pausing for a moment to think up a response, Michael smiled, "Of sorts, yeah…"

"Hah, I knew it the moment I laid eyes on ya. Ah, the rapture that one feels from exploring the unknown and reaping fortune and glory, such a life truly is fulfilling. Save for the obvious risks of dying, but as long as you keep a good head on your shoulders then you'll be fine. If you don't mind me askin' what interested, you to take up such a career?"

"…Just to help people is all." The young man nervously scratched his head.

"What? Just that, you're not really in it for the glory or even the fortune?" The merchant was visibly caught off guard by the simple answer.

"Yeah, I mean I guess fortune and fame are okay, but that stuff won't do much for me. I'd rather just help people. Plain and simple." Noticing the merchant's expression, he was a bit unsure of what he did to warrant such shock. Did he do say something wrong?

"Oh, don't mind me lad, I was just taken back was all. That's quite an admirable reason to be an adventurer." Bremondt smiled.

"Geez, thanks…" Michael scratched his head, sheepishly from the compliment.

"Now about those swords of yours, they're quite interesting. Don't believe I've seen anything like them in this realm before." Bremondt closely examined the blades laying on Michael's shoulder.

"They're katanas. One blade is sharp while the back end is duller." Michael simply explained with a genuine smile.

"I see, the one that has the tiger on the hand guard looks fascinating. Say, lad, you wouldn't mind letting me see that one now would you?" Curious, Bremondt held out his hand.

"Yes, I would very much mind…" He didn't mean to come off as sounding cold, but there was a strict boundary that not even polite acquaintances should cross. Off put but his sudden denial, Bremondt shook it off and coughed.

"I apologize. So, tell me, how are old are ya?" The merchant asked.

"Twenty-five, and my friend here is twenty-four years old." Michael nudged his head to the Lalafell sleeping behind him.

"Ah, so is he also a…?" Bremondt took a closer look at Momozigo's greener and cleaner apparel.

"Not exactly, but he's more along the lines of my…" Detecting something awry, Michael cuts the conversation sort to catch sight past the coachman, and his two chocobo pulling the carriage. What looked to be an Elezen man donning a light scaled armor in Gridanian colors and a mask stops the carriage.

"Halt, go no further!" The masked man shouted in distress.

"Now what's this all about…" Groaned the merchant, who followed the swordsman's line of sight.

"What's all of this about, eh, Wood Wailer?" The coachman grumbled to the masked polearm wielder.

"A skirmish has broken out up ahead with the Ixal!" The masked man said while out of breath, "For your own safety please remain-!" Soon enough the loud sound whirring filled the area catching the Wood Wailer and Michael's notice. Before Bremondt could even blink, the sharp end of a shot arrow's tip was merely inches away from piercing his neck.

"Phew!" Michael sighed in relief as he pulls himself back to glower at the arrow that he caught.

"What in the-?" The merchant blinked as his eyes bugged out at the sight.

"I-I'm awake! Are we under attack!?" Startled, the weary Momozigo was quick to awaken upon hearing the assault of arrows rain down on them.

"No, everything's fine. We just happened to come across a beastmen skirmish is all." Michael jovially laughed.

"Are you daft, then everything shouldn't be fine then…" The green capped Lalafell groaned.

"But it is though…" Michael directed his attention to the arrow.

It was a miracle that not much damage was done to any of the passengers considering that Michael saw that most of the projectiles either hit the trees behind them or lamely stab into the ground. He didn't want to jinx it but seemed like Mister Bremondt would have had a truly bad day were this arrow to struck him down after losing his drink.

"Bloody hells, we'll fend them off! You lot keep going!" Taking up arms, the polearm Wood Wailer rushed in to join the rushing forces of Bow wielding soldiers of Gridania. Without a moment's notice, the yellow feather avian creatures pulled the cart as quickly as they could from the range of the fight. But as they passed the conflict, Michael was able to get a good look at the lithe birdmen pouring of the woods to clash with their enemies.

"Seems like trouble. Should I…?" He reached for his sheathed blade but received an indignant shake of the head from Momozigo.

"Absolutely not, they're the Wood Wailers and God's Quiver of Gridania, this is they're job." The look of anxiety on Michael's face must have been apparent since Momozigo was still groaning and shaking his head.

"I won't stop you from helping but at least wait until we reach Gridania to gain our bearings, alright?"

"Okay…" The man sighed and sat back down while heaving out disappointed sigh. His companion's case was sound, but if there was some way to help even a little bit, then he'd be more than content with their current course of action.

"Thanks, lad…" Oh, right, he almost forgot to check up on Bremondt.

"Are you alright?" He worriedly asked.

"I'm still alive, so bloody yes I am…" Bremondt grinned.

"I'm glad…" Not all people can handle near death experiences that well, and he supposed that Bremondt must have had a few close encounters like this a travelling merchant. Looking around, he found that the coast was clear, but there was still apparent danger around them. The flow of aether was abundant here thanks to all of the life that inhabited the forest, it actually made it hard for him to detect the Ixal's killing intent from earlier.

Taking in the view of the grand forestry that the Black Shroud offered, Momozigo commented, "Such a beautiful sight now isn't it? Makes you wonder if the Calamity had really struck this place."

"It's been about five years, so some recovery was natural to expect. But to really find out for ourselves, we'd just have to see it with our own eyes." It took him a moment to realize, but just as soon as he took his eyes off of the majestic scenery, he found that one of Elezen twins were staring at him. He'd guess it was the sister amongst them, and judging by the momentary surprise in her wide blue eyes, he'd say that he caught her in the act of looking at him.

Smiling, he raised a hand in greeting, but found his response returned with a quick glance to the side. Well, it was worth a shot, and he doubt that there would be any time to form any form of conversation with the two of them since they had finally arrived at the grand front gates of Gridania.

Now it was unloading time.

"Finally, mmmmghugh! We made it…" Stretching out, Momozigo happily relished the chance to walk on two feet by moving about the place around the cart.

Strapping his katanas to the left side of his hip's belt, Michael prepared himself for the trip to the Adventurer's Guild. Though he didn't know much about the process of registering as one, he trusts Momozigo's gathered information about the steps to do it. The lalafell says that he got word from it by speaking with the Guild receptionist at Thanalan before they left. As always, Momozigo's crazy prepared.

"Oi, lad!" Bremondt waved as he approached the swordsman, "I believe this is where we'll have to part." He points to a rented chocobo carrying his wares in a cart, "I'm off to deliver my wares before hitting the highroads again."

"It was great getting to know you, Bremondt. I hope that your travels are safe from here onwards." Putting his fist to his palm, Michael gratefully bows to the merchant, a odd gesture which looked to catch the merchant by surprise but did not make him lose his smile.

"That should be my line, lad. But before you go, I would just like to give you this…" Pulling off a ring from his finger, Bremondt extended it out for the red banged adventurer to take.

"No, its fine, you don't have to give it to me. Helping was more than enough." The young man denied the offer but found Bremondt insistently placing it in his hand anyways.

"Just take it, Lad, you deserve it." Bremondt insisted.

"But I didn't ask for a reward and…" Guilt was written on his face and seeing that Bremondt simply chuckled at the man's honest inner confliction.

"Then don't think of it as a reward, Laddie. Just think of it as thanks for saving my life." Closing Michael's fingers around the ring, Bremondt pulled back and began to take his leave, "Fare thee well, Michael Stormkrieg, I'll be sure to listening closely about your future exploits from here onwards or…"

"Hm?" Michael blinked in confusion.

"I'll simply revisit and touch upon the crazy exploits that you've made in the past. Either way, I still get to brag about how I was able to meet the infamous _Storm Wolf_ of the desert." Michael's jaw fell upon hearing of that moniker, he didn't think he was that well known outside of Thanalan. He was no "Bull of Ala Mhigo" but he guesses that word does travel fast especially in constantly changing realm like Eorzea.

Approaching him from behind while hefting a big knapsack of his own, Momozigo looks to see Bremondt walking off. "I take it, you made a friend while I was asleep." The lalafell stood beside the midland hyur and watched as the merchant disappeared into the crowd of citizens in Grindania's Aetheryte Plaza.

"Yeah, saved his life and everything too. He even gave me a ring as…thanks…" Michael sighed and looked down at the ring.

"Really, that was nice of h-! Hold on, why are you making that face?" Momozigo narrowed his eyes.

Was his distaste really that showing on his face, thought Michael.

"W-Well, do you think that maybe I should give it back to him?" Michael sucked in his lips in thought.

"And why would you do that exactly?" Momozigo breathed in sharply, he looked aware of what he was about to say.

"Because…I feel guilty about taking his stuff after saving his life."

"But you just said that he gave it to you."

"He did."

"So then you didn't take it from him."

"But I saved his life."

"Yes, and?"

"Then doesn't that mean I took advantage of his generosity by taking i-?"

"Of course not!" Momozigo yelled, "He gave it as thanks! By the twelve, this is the reason why you always end up penniless when doing jobs! You make yourself feel guilty for the most unnecessary of reasons."

"Y-Yeeeeah, I should probably find him and return this…" Looking about, the young man began climbing the hill in what he believed was the direction of the market that Bremondt traveled.

"Not if I have anything to say about it! We're making our way towards the Adventurer's Guild and you're keeping that ring, got it?" Momozigo's smaller stature pushed the young man's legs in the direction of Guild's hall.

"But-!"

"Just stop worrying about it! I sometimes wonder why you didn't become a Saint because you definitely act like one all of the time." Momozigo tiredly groaned.

"Okay, fine…" The man begrudgingly accepted their change in plans, well, went back to their original plan. Afterwards, they have to attune to the city's Aetheryte in case of future emergencies out in the wild. Trudging their way to the hall, Michael quickly stuffs the ring in his pocket, planning to somehow find a way to wear it without hindering him in fights while pulling out something else to wear just as they reached the opened front door of the Adventurer's Guild.

"Are you prepared?" Momozigo looked up to his companion to find him slowly pushing a pair of black goggles with blue lenses past down his spiky black hair with red highlights.

"Yeah, let's do it." Looking ahead with those clear blue eyes of his, Michael took his very first step into the guild, and with that very first step, he finally began to walk down the perilous road that fate has in store for him.

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**I hoped that you guys enjoyed this chapter! Have an Awesome day!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

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Taking their first steps through the door, the two marveled at the great wooden hall that held adventurers aplenty. Some of what looked to be the newest of them wearing the newest of leather armor and garments, and most who appeared to be veterans based on their more confident expressions while wearing weathered yet superior gear.

The guild's hall had many tables bursting with the lot of them in their groups, or amid forming their groups as they all sought out to fulfill their various duties together. The sight alone was enough to make Michael smile. Everyone seemed so cooperative and helpful, compared to how things ran in Ul'dah, Gridania was much more…vibrant? No, that doesn't seem right, it felt less worrisome when it came to dependency and that's a quality that Ul'dah is severely lacking especially with its own city guards.

As they made there way to the front desk, he noticed the Elezen receptionist, who stood as tall as most Elezen's do. Though she looked to be a bit older than him, he couldn't deny her beauty. She had good looking ashen colored hair and brown eyes.

"Well, well, what do we have here? Two strapping young lads coming to give their assistance to guild by registering, am I right?" It was not only her cheerful tone of voice, but that smile of hers that made the young man feel a bit of warmth from the welcoming.

"That is correct, my lady. But alas, tis not I who will be registering, but my friend here." Momozigo politely bowed to the woman and gestured to his friend.

"Hello, my name is Michael Stormkrieg nice to meet you ma'am." Michael waved.

"As I am Momozigo, a pleasure, my lady." Momozigo bowed once more.

"Not just strapping, but well mannered too? Oh, you two will be an absolute delight to have around. Oh, and speaking of having manners, where are mine?" The kind woman laughed as she tried to compose herself, "Welcome, Miounne's my name, or mother Miounne as most call me and the Carline Canopy is my place."

Mother Miounne welcomingly held her arms out, "As the head of the Adventurer's Guild in Gridania, I've been given the honor to provide guidance to the fledgling heroes who pass through our gates. No matter your ambitions, the guild is here to help you attain them. All that we ask in return is that you help assist the people of Gridania, a fair deal, no?"

"Quite, a fair trade for our services." Momozigo rubbed his chin and nodded.

"Do you wish for us to solve the Ixal problem?" Michael inquired, the incident from their trip here still had him concerned. If the Ixal were anything like those Lizard men, Amalj'aa, then they must really be causing a ruckus in such a serene place.

Still retaining that bright smile of hers, Miounne looked downcast as she lowly muttered to herself about how it was true that those damned beastmen were creating such a racket near the city. The sound of annoyance was evident in her voice, but he realized that she chose to say it just as quietly.

"Though they may be a thorn in our side these days, the Ixal aren't the only problem that our home faces these days. Any newcomers may not see it, but our people are still living in a state of trepidation. From those poaching bandits to those damned Garleans in the East. But all that pales in comparison to what happened that day on the calamity, aye, these woods still bear the scars from the days five years ago." Almost as if giving a prayer, Miounne closed eyes and quietly gave herself a moment of silence.

"The calamity…" The beginning of the Seventh Umbral Era, when the dread wyrm descended from the crimson moon called Dalamud that purged the lands and almost laid waste to the city states. To be frank, the whole thing was a bit of a blur for him. He wasn't aware of what was going on at the time, he was still in Thanalan and it was around that time that he met Momozigo.

He had witnessed the vestiges of damage that the city-state faced, but he didn't really understand the whole scope of the realm's destruction and he wasn't the only one as the whole incident is shrouded in mystery with many different people saying their take on the catastrophe. Well, at least the only thing he could remember back then was that he had a lot more people to help during those passing five years.

"Yet amongst the dread left by the disaster, many still yet remember and honor the deeds that helped save our realm, the bold and valiant adventurers that fought tooth and nail for us all. Though we may have lost them on that day during the Battle of Carteneau, we still warmly remember their deeds. To this day, they even inspire new adventurers to persevere to one day take up their mantles." Almost nostalgically, Miounne recounted days long past gone to the two much to Momozigo's confusion and Michael's admiration.

The smile on the swordsman's face was almost evident as he tried to imagine what those adventurers were and how kind they must have been to place their everything to help the entire realm. He isn't one to weigh his own deeds against the deeds of others, but he soon wonders if perhaps he could one day do the same. But such a day was never to be wished for should another calamity reared its ugly head to claim many more innocent lives.

"Ahem…" Momozigo coughed in his hand to break the pair from their trances, he was virtually the only one who wasn't daydreaming and felt as though they were losing sight of their main objective.

"Oh, yes, apologies." Miounne sheepishly laughs as she regains her composure once more, "Pray do not feel daunted by the deeds of legends. We do not ask that you become another Warrior of Light, only that you do what you can to assist the people of Gridania. Every contribution helps and I trust you'll play your part?"

No doubt, Michael thought and nodded.

"Good, now all that's left then is to conclude the business of registration. Here's a quill." She handed the man a quill, then turned around to the many wooden drawers on the walls behind the counter to pull out a registration sheet and place it on the countertop.

"And if you would be so kind as to scrawl your name right _there._" She pointed to the cross lined.

"Thank you." But just before the inked quill's point could touch the piece of parchment, Miounne placed her hand on it giving him pause as he looked up at her warm smiling face, but this time something was way off.

"Ah, but before you write anything, I would appreciate it if you used your real name. Lets just say that…we have a special place in the seventh hell for those who jot down peculiar aliases." The cold look in her eye was enough to send a chill down his spine.

"R-Right…" The young man looked to his companion, who was also just as shaken as he was. It was not hard to imagine that she must have had many new adventurers come by with some questionable titles. Deciding not to gain her ire so early in their acquaintanceship, he quickly scribed his name on the parchment and handed it back to her.

Taking a full minute to examine the name, Miounne smiled, "Good boy." This feeling of narrowly avoiding such crushing disappointment really reminded the swordsman of his childhood, he can now safely confirm why she was called Mother Miounne.

Turning to Momozigo, she prepared to hand him a registration parchment as well, but he stopped her before she could even give him a quill.

"No need for that, I'm not interested in being an adventurer. I'm simply here to assist my friend here." Momozigo shook his head.

"Ah, I see. So, I take it that you are Michael's retainer?" Miounne asked.

"Not quite, and I do believe he wouldn't be able to keep me well paid due to his bad tendency with money." Momozigo groaned.

"A wasteful spender with a bad habit, I take it?" Miounne casted the swordsman a sly smile much to his embarrassment.

"Quite the opposite, he's a charitable soul, but with a wasteful and gullible bad habit." Michael didn't know whether to feel happy from the praise or insulted from what came after it. Though he couldn't quite refuse Momozigo's claims despite him sounding quite harsh about it.

"I'm simply just this man's friend, plain and simple. My services for him are for free, and I simply handle his Gil account and other services that helps provide him on his quests." Momozigo then pulls out an old map from his knapsack, Michael surmised that he obtained it just before they left Ul'dah, as always Momozigo was prepared. He would have just blindly walked about the place himself but seeing the location of all of Gridania's hotspots was great too.

"Such a loyal friend indeed, I'm quite excited to hear about your meeting one of these days." Momozigo frowned at Miounne's expecting words and looked to the side in what appeared to be a bit of shame.

The swordsman caught onto his friend's discomfort and nervously laughed, a story like that was probably not the highlight of Momozigo's life that he wants to share. Even so, he still wouldn't forget that day they became companions.

"But nonetheless, you are now registered adventurers of Gridania from this moment forward. May this nation blessed of the elements and the bounty of the Twelveswood bring to you what you seek. The guild and I expect great things from you." Miounne joyously clapped for the man much to his embarrassment. To give out such doting despite meeting her a few minutes ago, she truly was a mother to the adventurers.

"Would you look at what just arrived. Another godsdamned adventurer bringing more trouble…"

But this enjoyment soon came to a halt as the disgruntled voice of a masked Elezen man, who came up from the stairs leading below near the front desk garnered all of their attention. Taking a closer look, Michael found the Elezen man to be wearing the same armor as the Wood Wailer from before as he was followed by two others, a hyur man and woman.

"Don't you start with that…" Miounne scolded, "You should know that adventurers are the very salve Gridania needs. You mean to disregard the Elder Seedseer herself, who bade us all to welcome these outsiders with open arms?"

"Of course not! Lest you forget, it is my sworn duty to uphold the peace! Am I to blame if these so called explorers bring unwanted trifles with them? My mistrust of any outside forces should only be natural." The Elezen wood wailer retorted with a bit of distaste in his tone.

"As it should be, but such a rude display and unmoving mistrust of others would only add more to your paranoid musings that would soon hinder you supposed duty." Momozigo muttered loudly to the Wood Wailer while continuing to examine the map.

"What nonsense did you just spout, you little…!?" The Wood wailer growled.

"…" The lalafell kept quiet as he still examined the map, but the look in his moving eyes told Michael that he was quite annoyed with the Elezen's rude behavior and simply decided to keep to himself should it escalate to anger.

Calmly striding towards the Wood Wailer, Michael held out his hand, and grinned, "Look, I know you have the right to be skeptical, but lets at least try to get along, okay? My name is Micha-." He didn't even get the chance to introduce himself as the Wood Wailer smacked his hand away.

"…You're correct, and I do apologize for my brashness, but adventurer allow me to give you a fair warning. Should you cause any problems here, I shall personally cast you out of this realm and into the seventh hell." The Wood wailer lowly threatened as he took that moment to then leave the guild with his compatriots.

"…Okay…" Michael shrugged it off but smiled a bit at the man as he left.

"A real piece of work that guy is…" Momozigo bitterly groaned.

"Ahem. Pay that outburst no mind. He meant only to…er…counsel you. Suspiscious characters have been prowling the Shroud as of late and the Wood Wailer's feel they cannot afford to take any chances especially with outsiders." Mother Miounne explained.

"No, it's fine actually. I'm rather happy about it, strangely enough." The man was surprised to see such allegiance in the soldiers here, they actually cared about their homes, and they're selfless about it too. Being protective of their nation and its people spoke higher volumes about Gridania as a whole compared to the unpredictable Brass Blades in Ul'dah, who are easily swayed by bribes and such.

"I see, but don't worry too much about it. A few good deeds here and there will eventually earn you the locals' trust." Miounne reassuringly gave him a thumbs up, "So on behalf of my fellow citizens, I welcome you to Gridania. May you come to consider our nation as your own in time. Now then you may depend on old Mother Miounne to teach you a few things should you ask for it. It's quite easy for me to tell some experienced adventurers from the new ones, and I do believe your more than sufficient enough to get the handle of things without my help."

"Thank you, but I believe we can figure things out from he-."

"If you don't mind me asking." Cutting in the middle of Michael talking, Momozigo raised his hand and asked, "Where would your marketplace be and who's master merchant that oversees it?"

"Ah, if you're looking to earn his counsel, then who you're looking for is Parsemontret at the Shaded Bower in Old Gridania, we're currently in New Gridania where we're trying to expand our nation's city." Miounne explained, "Ah, but before you meet him. Make sure to offer him one of my famed eel pies."

Michael almost gagged at the thought of such a delicacy, but he tried his best to hide it to avoid being rude.

"As you may find out, the master merchant has a tendency to be uncooperative, but like so many men, a way to earn his favor is through his stomach." Miounne pulled out a basket from beneath the counter and hands it to Momozigo, "Here, you are. I was planning on giving him this batch today as thanks for his hard work, but seeing as your in need of a few good connections, you may use it to gain his favor."

"Why thank you, milday." Momozigo gratefully bowed his head.

"And as for you Michael, should you come across any citizens in need don't be afraid to offer them a hand, alright?" At that, the swordsman eagerly nodded at the woman's proposal and was quick to ask if anyone would require his services, but he was once again cut off from the conversation by Momozigo raising his hand in dismissal of such an action.

"I'm afraid that will have to wait." Momozigo said.

"Why so? I've already registered and I'm more than able enough to lend a hand." Michael explained.

"Yes, but you're not prepared. We should get everything situated such as our arrangements for our stay here…" Momozigo raised his hand to stop Michael from responding, "And no, we're not camping our whole stay in the woods. We've done enough sleeping outside on the trip here and I would rather sleep on a comfortable bed if you don't mind."

"Ah, if its an inn you want, then why not try "The Roost" right there its quite affordable for adventurers who can't brave camping in twelveswoods at night." Miounne directed their attention to the desk next to hers.

"Why thank you." Momozigo gratefully bowed to the Elezen woman.

"Okay, now that we have that situated, I can now go help others, right?"

"Not until I'm done haggl-I mean getting on the Master merchant's good side with this eel pie." Momozigo then checked the time outside by looking at the placement of shadows, "It looks to be about an hour past noon, so it's a safe bet that he hasn't had lunch yet. Good makes it easier for me when I show this to him."

"Couldn't I just go and do some quests while you do that?" Michael asked.

"Of course not, I _have_ to be there with you before things go out of hand." Momozigo stuck out his hand, "Now may I have your Gil pouch?" Begrudgingly pulling out the pouch from his bag, Michael hands it to the Lalafell with a bitter look on his face.

"Good, now just attune to the city's Aetheryte and wait for my return. After that we'll get business." Momozigo trotted off and waved goodbye much to the man's chagrin. Nothing wrong was going to come out of him helping people, in fact, the opposite was more likely to happen so he saw no reason why he would be delayed so.

"I wish you two have a great stay here in Gridania." But that welcoming smile from Mother Miounne was enough to uplift his spirits a bit.

"Thank you, Mother Miounne, and I wish you have a great day as well." Michael bowed his head then took his leave but not before hearing the sounds of strange bickering emerging from the lower levels of the guild to Miounne's desk along with Elezen's woman's forced laughter. However, he paid it no mind as he continued his trek from the guild hall up the grassy hill towards the Aetheryte plaza.

The whole area surrounding was beautiful and surprisingly bustling with citizens, he didn't expect it to be cramped like Ul'dah, but it was surprising to see so much vibrancy in such a quiet city state. There was a considerable amount of climbing in their place as he climbed a few rows of stairs to reach the levitating crystal that just pulsed with pure aether.

"After this, I'll finally be attuned to this area so lets just…" He placed his hand on the warm surface of the crystal and concentrated on the aether in his own body. When attuning to Aetheryte, one must have the basic knowledge of control of one's own life force to undergo using magic such as _Return,_ which is the most basic of magics.

While being taught swordsmanship, he always found the concept of magic iffy, but got the hang of it after a while. Though he wasn't a full-fledged spell-caster like most scholars, conjurers or black mages, he and most other melee-oriented fighters were able to use some magic in tandem with their techniques through practice and observing how magic users basically channel their spells.

The overwhelming amount of aether within the large crystal was like the same in all of the others in Thanalan. He just had to concentrate and match the wavelength of his own aether with the large crystal's then eventually, he'd be able to comfortably tolerate the rush of energy. After a few seconds, the prolonged wait of attuning confused him. He wasn't one to gloat, but he was fairly accustomed to the act.

No, right now it felt as if the crystal was keeping him there on purpose as if it was trying to commune with him. He almost laughed at the thought, but then a sudden pain panged through his mind as his vision grew blurry in a burst of light. His heart raced. Was he entering that dream setting again, no, the vibe felt the same but it wasn't as soothing or as calm like before. Everything happened so fast.

Soon enough the burst of light dimmed to show him mere flashes of what appeared to be one of the clearing in the Black Shroud's forests. But one peculiar sight caught his attention, a curved sword stabbed into a large rotting tree stump releasing a malignant aura. Before he could even question it, he was instantly pulled out of the sudden whiplash of a vision.

His eyes shot open as he pulled himself away from the Aetheryte in a cold sweat. He looked at his hand in shock then back to the crystal. What had just happened, and what did he just see? It wasn't a dream, and what does that sword in a stump even mean and why he see it? These questions just rushed into his head but thankfully before he could get lost in his distressed mind, a worried Wood Wailer came to his side.

"Excuse me, sir?" A female hyur garbed in the green armor approached him, "What ails you? You appeared to have been in contact with the crystal for a bit too long there? Is everything alright?"

"Uh…yes. I'm fine…" He wasn't even sure anymore, does he say anything to her about what just happened? Thinking it over a bit, he decided against it, not due to him looking a loon, but because of this sudden urge to seek out the location of that sword and stump. Something about it just didn't sit right with him, that vision or whatever it was doesn't matter now. If there's a chance that something might cause more problems for the denizens in the woods, then he has to help somehow.

"Thanks, and excuse me?" Michel coughed.

"Hm?" The wood wailer nodded.

"You wouldn't happen to exactly know where there's a sword in stump in the forest do you?" He tried his best not awkwardly phrase and yet he still felt that it came out just as strange as he predicted.

"W-Well…I may not know much about any swords stuck in stumps, but the forest is currently littered with a few thanks to some of the bandits and Ixal damaging the forest by cutting its trees much to annoyance of the elementals. At least that's what a Seedseer friend of mine told me." Right, conjurers here can commune with the spirits of the forest, but back on track.

"I see, so _that_ could be linked to either of those two groups…" Michael rubbed his chin as he mumbled to himself.

"Sir…?" Half of their face may have been blocked by the mask, but the female Wood Wailer was giving him the strangest of looks.

"Oh…oh! Please don't worry about me anymore. I'm doing fine, well, I'll be seeing you and thanks again!"

"R-Right…" The wood wailer awkwardly waved at the weird man and returned to her duty of keeping guard of the Aetheryte.

He had to hurry, and find that area before anything bad happened. To turn away from such a potential threat that could harm others would shame him and couldn't live a life with regrets that would stain his honor. The Black Shroud was a huge place, but thankfully, he hoped that all he had to do was sense for that malignant aura, or detect any aether disturbances in the woods and he'll find the cause and fix it. Huh, it almost feels like he's forgetting something, but that could wait after he resolves the problem.

Without thinking, he accidentally bumps into a woman walking alongside what seemed to be a Lalafell.

"Whoops!"

"S-Sorry about that!" He didn't get a good look at them as he quickly bowed his head apologetically before he took off running once more. He did question the fashion sense of one of them, but he brushed it aside as he ran past the guild hall and back towards the front gates of the city.

Looking back towards the rushing man that had just ran past them, the masked hyur woman shook her head and groaned, "How rude…"

"He seemed to be in a rush something we should relate to. Come now, Yda, we must prepare for our investigation." The monocle wearing Lalafell urged the woman to follow, "And this time try not be air-headed and actually be aware of your surroundings."

"I was aware, that rude man's to blame for running into me." The masked woman huffed and crossed her arms.

"Yes, yes…now come. First the market then to the Central Shroud." The Lalafell dismissed her excuses and kept on walking down their grassy path.

"But I was aware… Hey, Papalymo! Are you listening, hey!" The masked girl gave chase after he companion but not before giving one annoyed glance back at the direction that the rude random swordsman took when he ran off. She definitely was going to give them such an earful the next time that she sees them.

* * *

**Well, I hoped that you all enjoyed the chapter! Well, I'm Out so Peace Out and have a lovely day!**


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